Mechanical musical instkument



(No Model.) 4 SheetSheef 1Q O. H. ARNO.

MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

N0. 361,200. Patented Apr. 12, 1887.

l [\IVENT III R E5- ZZZ (Ti/Q (No Model.)

. I 4 Sheets Sheet 2. 0. H. ARNO.

MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

Patented Apr. 12,1887.

PM-INTER- N. PETERS. Phnm-Lilhngmpher, Washinglum D. C.

(No Model.) i 4 Sheets-Sheet 3. 0. H. ARNO.

. MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT. V A

No. 361,200. Patented Apr. 12, 1887.

WITNESSES. I [\JVENTEI Q Q OZZI/erH A1720 N. PETERS. PhowLilho n -her, Washington, DV (2.

(No-Model.)

- v 4 SheefsSh eet 4. 0. H. .ABNO.

MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

Patented Apr. 12, 1887.

N. PETERS. Phonrllthogmphnr, Washingwn, m c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OLIVER H. ARNO, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOB TO THE ARNO MUSICAL BOX COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

MECHANICAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 361,200, dated April 12, 1887.

(No modem To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OLIVER I-I. ARNO, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Im- A provement in Mechanical Musical Instruments, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in mechanical musical instruments, and to such instruments more particularly that have their sounding devices composed of teeth or tongues adapted to be vibrated; and the invention consists of sounding devices composed of teeth or tongues, 860., adapted to vibrate, in combination with mechanism constructed and arranged for operation thereof, all substantially as hereinafter fully described.

In the accompanying plate of drawings is illustrated a mechanical musical instrument constructed according to this invention Figure 1 being a vertical longitudinal section of the instrument in' its casing or box, which is also in vertical section. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the instrument, the case being removed; Fig. 3, a vertical longitudinal section on a different line from that in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is an end elevation; Fig. 5, a detail vertical cross-section on line 5 5, Figs. 2 and 6; Fig. 6, a detail plan view, and Fig. 7 a detail view in part section and part elevation, to be hereinafter referred to; Fig. 8, a detail plan view, to be hereinafter referred to; Figs. 9, 10, and 11, respectively, plan, cross, and longitudinal sec tions, to be hereinafter referred to; and Figs. 12 and 13, detail vertical and horizontal sections of a modification.

In the drawings, A represents a casing or box having covers B O, hinged, respectively, at a b to the partition h, and in which casing all the parts connected with the musical instrument are placed and secured.

D is an upright board extending across the instrument, securedto the back upright board, E, the board D having secured to it on one side a vertical force-bellows, F, having two feeders, G H, which are properly connected by pitman'rods d d each to a horizontal shaft, J, adapted to turn in bearings e in the blocks f, secured to the opposite side of the board D, 50 and to be operated by its crank-handle K; or it can be operated by a spring or by any suitable power.

L is the take up roll for the perforated music sheet M, and adapted to turn by its journals gin hearings in horizontal arms N, 5 secured to the side edges of the board D, and to'be operated by its pulley 1?, attached to an extension of one of its journals 9, connected by a belt, Z, to a pulley, Q, on the shaft J.

R is the music-roll, adapted to turn by its journals m in bearings in the other ends of the arms N, and having a crank-handle, S, by which it can be turned to wind the music-sheet thereon. The music sheet travels from the music-roll to the take-u p roll, passing over the upper edge or face, T, of the board D, which has such face or surface widened by the extensions g each side.

U is a block hinged at r at one end to one arm N, and extending over and adapted to lie close to the surface T, and when swung down to be secured by a hook, it, pivoted at u on the opposite arm N, and adapted to swing and catch by its hook portion over a pin, 1;, on the end of the block. This block U has a chamher, V, having a thin bottom, 10, of india-rubher or of any suitable flexible material, and its upper side is closed with a plate of glass, y. The perforated music-sheet travels between the block U and the surface T, and the block has on its underside, at each end, apiece of leather,

a, to allow for the thickness of the musicsheet and to make a close joint. Near each side edge of the board D is a vertical passage,

b, open at its upper end, 0', to the surface T, and its lower end turning and opening into the bellows chamber W. In each end of the block U is a passage, (1, open to and over its respective passage b in the board D, and leading and opening to the chamber V, as shown 0 more particularly in Fig. 5 in cross-section.

Y is the sounding device, consisting of a steel tongue or tooth, such as are commonly used in music-boxes, so called, secured'by one end, 6, by a screw, f, to the cross-bar Z, 5 its other or vibrating end, extending forward therefrom, being free to vibrate for the sounding of the same.

A is a steel spring wire or picker secured by its looped end h by a screw, Z, passing rco IO to the picker.

through such loop and screwing into a crossbar, B, for its free end at to extend toward and in its normal position be just under the end 9' of the sounding-tongueY, as shown more particularly in Figs. 1 and 3.

Gis a cross-barhaving an opening, a,throu gh which the picker A extends, which opening is sufficiently largeto allow thefreemovements of the picker, the bar serving as a protection Pushing up the free end at of the spring wire or picker A, it will strike against the end 9 of the tongue Y, and as it passes by such end cause the tongue to vibrate, sounding the same.

Dis a pneumatic bellows secured in a horizontal position to the board or partition E for its moving board q to move up and down.

1- is a passage leading from the pneumatic bellows-chamber t through the board E and board D up to and opening to the surface T at a and under an opening, '0, in the flexible bottom 10 ofthe chambered block D. On the top of the pneumatic bellows Dis a block, 20, having a central longitudinal slot, y, at its outer end, in which lies the angularly-bent end a of a wire, b secured at its upper end to a square wooden push-rod, A, which extends upward through a square opening, 0', in the cross board B, which opening serves as a guide to the rod in its movements. The upper end, d, of the rod is directly under the end at of the wire or picker A, but a short distance below it, as shown more particularly in Figs. 1 and 3.

c is a spring-wire secured by its right-angular end f to the block 101, its other end be-' ing bent at a right angle and arranged to lie in the slot y and bear in the inside h of the angular portion a of the wire If, its spring force keeping the bend down upon the bottom 1 of and in the slot y, but which affords an easy means of allowing the wire I) to be disconnected from the pneumatic bellows when desired, as by simply raising the free end 9 of the spring sufficiently the wire I)" can be easily removed from the slot.

on is a passage opening to the surface T of the board in front of and in the same longi- ,tudinal line with the opening 2t andextending downward, and thence by a horizontal portion into the passage 1', as shown in Fig. 3 more particularly.

a is a screw-plug screwing into the part (1, for its inner end, 0'', to project into the passage m", as shown, by which screwing in of the screw the passage m" can be closed or reduced in area, as desired, to allowa more or less amount of air to pass through the same.

a is an opening in the flexible bottom .over the passage m.

The perforations 15 111 the music-sheet are each made of a length to extend whenin position therefor over the two openings.

The operation of the instrument is as follows: The music -sheet on the musicroll by its outer end is passed between the chambered block U, and the surface T, the block being swung upon its hinges for the purpose, and when properly secured to the take-up roll the block is secured in place by its hook I. Turn the shaft J, which will operate the bellows, and by its connection by the belt and pulleys with the take-up roll, cause it to rerevolve and the music-sheet to travel over the surface T, between it and the chambered block U. As aperforation in said music-sheet comes over the opening on", air from the bellows passes through the passage 1) to the chamber V of the block through the perforation and through said opening on into the passage 1" to and into the pneumatic bellows 1), raising its movingboard, and through it the push-rod A and picker A, slowly up to and against the tongue Y in position, as said perforation comes over the main or direct opening a, for the air, passing through the same, to act with more power upon the pneumatic bellows, and, by raising it, to still further and quite suddenly cause the picker to pick or snap the tongue and vibrate it. As the perforation passes by the opening a, and the unperforated portion of the paper comes over closes, air passing out at the opening a it being facilitated somewhat by the spring 'v' secured to the board E, and bearing by its free end on the bellows, and as said bellows closes it pulls down the puslrrod A into position for operation-again, as before, when a perforation comes over the openings in" and a. As the picker A in returning to its normal position, after having snapped and caused the tongue to vibrate, wouldv strike the tongue again and interfere with its proper vibration, the picker is arranged to return as follows:

0 is a wire or rod having a central rightangular portion, a which is within a socket or bearing in the push-rod, and in which it can swing or swivel one, 0, of its arms 0%, extending up to andlying against the side of the picker, and its other arm extending up and then down, as shown, and passing through an open slot, f, in the board B and such arm being bent at an angle, as shown at g in Fig. 7. As the push-rod is moved up by the bellows, and has raised the-picker past the end 9 of the tongue and vibrated the same, the angular portion 9 of the arm moves into the slot f and abutting against one side is swung one side or to the ri ht on its ivot a lllOVllWhhO arm 0 to the left, and pushing the end m of the picker A off the end d of the puslrrod, when the spring force of the picker moves it down at the side of the push-rod, and when in such position, the push-rod falling, the arm (1 is swung back by the picker A, and when the push-rod is down in its normal position the picker moves back into its position over the upper end of the push-rod. The picker is thus moved laterally from the vertical plane of the tongue bythe wire 0 and byits spring-power moved down below the horizontal plane of the tongue, when it moves back into position under the tongue and over the upper end of the push-rod, which leaves the tongue perfectly free, so far as'the picker is concerned, to vibrate as long as it can.

The picker is preferably made of spring wire or metal, and to make it more free and pliable in its vertical and horizontal movements it is cut away on both sides for a short distance, makinga thin flat central vertical portion, as at h and on its top and bottom making a thin flat central horizontal portion, as at l, the two portions being at right angles or substantially' at right angles to each other, as shown in the drawings.

Moving the push-rod and the picker slowly up to the tongue by the, air first passing to the pneumatic bellows through the small or supplementary opening m preparatory to its more forcible operation by the air passing through the large and main passage a, euables the picker A to snap and vibrate the tongue without a click or noise, as it would do if operated only by the main opening to raise the picker and snap the tonguein one quick movement.

Another way is shown of raising the picker preparatory to its being forced to snap the tongue, and that is shown in Figs. 12 and 18 in detail section In this an additional pnue matic bellows, D is used in connection with theone D, which is supplied with air from the bellows direct through apassage, m leading from the bellows F through the upright and back boards, and through the board E into the pneumatic bellows D As the bellows F are operated, air passes to the pneumatic bellows D raises it, and also the pneumatic bellows D, by the extension or arm n of the blockw, carrying the button Q3, attached by a screw-wire, r, to said arm, thereby rais ing the push-rod and picker up to the tongue, holding it there so long as the bellows are operated in readiness for the pneumatic bellows D, to operate it as before described, when a perforation comes over the opening a, the opening m in this case being dispensed with. In this modification thepicker is held up continuously, while in the other it is only raised as each perforation comes over the opening m When the pneumatic bellows D moves up to cause its respective picker tosnap thetongue, the button q is raised from the bellows D which allows air to enter at the opening 25*, causing the bellows to close, assisted by its spring u, thus allowing the bellows D to fall, also for its picker to move sidewise, down, and back under its tongue in position for it to be again raised as the button 9 from the closing of thebellows D stops or closes the opening t in the bellows D ,which again fills with air,as before, and raises the picker up to the tongue in position to operate on it again.

To prevent the bellows D opening too far, a button, 0 attached to the screw wire Q03, screwing into the board above it, is provided, against which the spring-wire abuts, such button being raised or, lowered by screwing it on or off its wire to regulate the desired amount of opening of the bellows D for the proper raise of the push-rod.

To rewind the music-sheet upon the musicroll after it has been wound upon the take-up roll, the pulley P is adapted to slide on its journal g, to disconnect its radial groove a from an offset or shoulder, b, on the shaft, the pulley being moved by an arm, cf, pivoted at d to a block, n, on the arm N, and having an arm, 6*, lying within a circumferential groove, f, inthe hub of the pulley P, by which swinging of the arm 6 outward carries with it the pulley P along its shaft, disengaging its slot a from the shoulder b, when by turning the crank S the n1usic-roll is revolved and the music-sheet wound thereon from the take-up roll, which is free to revolve independent of its pulley forthe purpose. Swinging the arm back carries with it the pulley, its slot a eugaging with the shoulder b on the journal, when the take-up roll will be revolved from the turning of the pulley P, as before. Where the wire 0 bears against the picker A, the picker is covered with leather, 9*, or other suitable material,to prevent noise of the parts when operated together.

In Figs. 9, 10, and 11 is shown means of regulating and adjusting the picker A as to its position in relation to the tongue for the best operationthereof. The picker-wire lies within a cross-groove, If, in the bar 13, and over the series of pickers is placed a fiat bar of metal, Z", secured by screws m between the pickers, the bar pressing on andholding the pickers firmly in their respective grooves, which are shallow, for the pickers to project slightly above the upper surface of the bar B.

K is a screw screwing through the portion n, and having a circumferential groove, 1", in which lies theright-augular end tofthepicker, so that turning the screw K in or out will respectively move forward or backward the picker, and thus its snap or contact with its respective tongue when operating it will be adjusted, as desired.

t is a button screwing onto the wire 16*, secured to the board E,.and in position for the block to to abut against it, whereby-screwing it off or on regulates the closing of the pneumatic bellows D, so as to prevent it closing tightly and interfere with its readily filling with air and its proper operation.

In lieu of tongues for sounding devices, reeds, bells, or any suitable sounding device can be used that can be operated byany of the parts of'this invention.

G is a frame hinged to the upright cross. partition h, in which is a sheet of glass, f, through which the operation of the tongues can be seen, and yet keep out the dust and dirt. r

The covers B G to the casing enable easy access to the various parts for the removal and insertion of a music-sheet, and also for re pairs.

The picker can be arranged to be operated IIO Lil

by other means than a perforated music-sheet and bellows, as described, and can be arranged to make its required movements by other ways than the operating -wire 0 and its spring force; also, in lieu of a crank to operate the shaft J, a spring or other motive force can be applied thereto.

The frame supporting the tongues and pickers is preferably made of iron or metal for the better sounding of the tongues.

The boards supporting the various parts are suitably arranged and duplicated, as is necessary for a proper support of the parts for a complete operating instrument.

Although only one tongue and its necessary operating parts has been particularly described, they can be duplicated to the number desired for the scale of the instrument.

The operating or vibrating tongues by and through the means of a perforated music-sheet enable any number of tunes to be arranged and played upon such instrument at a trifling cost, as perforated music-sheets can be easily and cheaply produceda greatadvantage over music-boxes having their vibrating tongues operated by barrels, as the expense of preparing a barrel for such instruments necessarily limits the number of tunes to be played upon such instruments.

Fig. 14 is a detail view of the end of the hub of the pulley I, showing the groove a. This groove can extend across the hub, if desired, in lieu of only half-way, as shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. In a mechanical musical instrument having teeth or tongues for sounding devices, the combination, with a spring-pieker for operation on a tooth or tongue, of means for operation 011 said picker to move it to and snap said tooth or tongue, and then move it to one side thereof for said picker to move downward and then into its normal position, when or after said operating mechanism returns to its normal position.

2. In amechanieal musical instrument having teeth or tongues, 850., for sounding devices, the combination, with a sounding tooth or tongue and a picker for operation thereof, of mechanism for raisi ngthefree en (1 of said picker slowly up to and in contact with said tongue preparatory to its operation thereof, operated by means of a supplementary air-passage, m", leading from the raceway over which the perforated music-sheet travels to and connecting with the main air-passage a".

3. In a mechanical musical instrument hav ing teeth or tongues for sounding devices, in combination with aQtooth or tongue, a springpicker for operation thereof, a push-rod for operation of said picker connected to apnenmaticbellows, an air-passage making communication between said pneumatic bellows and an operating-bellows, and a perforated musicsheet for making and breaking the air-communication between said operating-bellows and pneumatic bellows.

4. The combination, with operating-bellows having an air-passage leading therefrom and a chamber, V, having communication therewith, an air-passage, 4', leading to a pneumatic bellows, and a supplemental air-passage, on", between said chamber and said air-passage 'r', of a perforated music-sheet adapted to travel between said chamber and said air-passages 0- and m", for the purpose specified.

5. The combination, with the picker A, a push rod, A arranged to operate on said picker, and a guide-plate, Bi forsaid push-rod, provided with aslot, f, of a wire, 0, pivoted to said push-rod and provided with an angular portion, g, for the purpose specified.

6. The picker A, made of spring material and having two flattened portions, 711 p, substantially at right angles to each other, for the purpose specified.

7. The combination, with the picker A, adapted to lie within a groove, it, in its support, of a regulating-screw, K", and a bar, Z", and a screw, m*, for the purpose specified.

8. The combination, with the picker A, arranged to operate upon the tongue A and secured by one end to a support, of a bar or plate, 0, having an opening, a, through which the picker extends, for the purpose specified.

9. The picker A, covered or protected with leather or other suitable material, for the purpose specified.

10. The combination, with the pneumatic bellows D, provided with aslot,y,and asprin g, e", of a push-rod, A", provided with an angular portion, a disposed in said slot, and held therein by the spring 0 substantially as dc scribed.

11. The combination, with the pneumatic bellows, of thestop o, for the purpose specified.

12. The combinatiomwith apassage, 1", leading from the raceway T to' a bellows, D, of a supplel'nentary passage, m leading from said raceway and communicating with the passage 1', and provided with a regulating-valve, n", for the purpose specified.

13. The combination, with the shaft 9, provided with a shoulder or offset, 1)", of a pulley arranged to slide thereon and to engage with said offset by a groove, a, and provided with a circumferential groove, f, in which is disposed an arm of an operating-lever, for the purpose specified.

11L. The combination, with the shaft 9 of the takeup roll, provided with an offset or shoulder, b", and a pulley, I, having a groove, a", of an arm or lever, 6 engaging with said pulley, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

15. In a mechanical musical instrument having teeth or tongues, &c., for sounding devices, the combination, with a sounding tooth or tongue, ofaspring-picker for operation thereof.

16. In a mechanical musical instrument having teeth or tongues, &c., for sounding devices, the combination, with a push-rod, A", for operation on a picker to snap and sound a tooth or tongue, of means operated by said push-rod to move said picker, after it has snapped and sounded said tooth or tongue, to one side of said push-rod and tooth or tongue for its return to its normal position.

17. In amechanical musical instrument having teeth or tongues, &c. for sounding devices, the combination, with a push-rod for opera tion on a picker to snap and sound a tooth or tongue, of awire or lever pivoted to said pushrod or on an independent support, having an angular or cam portion which in the movement 'of said push-rod will abut against a shoulder on the frame or support or push-rod and move said picker by one of its arms to one side or out of operative contact with the push-rod,

I 5 substantially as and for the purpose specified.

18. In a mechanical musical instrument having teeth or tongues, 850., for sounding devices, the combination, with a sounding tooth or tongue, of a picker for operation thereof, rigidly secured by one end to the frame or sup- 20 port, and its free end adapted to move to and snap and pass to one side of said tooth or tongue and then down into its normal position.

In testimony whereof Ihave hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing Wit- 25 nesses.

' OLIVER H. ARNO.

Witnesses:

EDWIN W. BROWN, PERCY BRYANT. 

